Prep boys golf: Branson team ready to make another run at a championship

FOR MOST TEAMS, earning 10-plus victories and possessing three golfers who can win on any given day are monumental years.

Not at the Branson School.

Expectations are high every season for the defending MCAL regular-season champions, and that hasn't changed. The Bulls are 10-4 and are poised once again to make a run at the MCAL tournament title.

However, the sting of those defeats continue to linger, especially with the talent on the team.

"We've definitely had some good performances and played well against some good teams like (Marin Catholic) and Redwood," Jack Atwater said. "But unfortunately, we've had our bad days against some other good teams like San Marin and Novato. Those days have been blemishes on our record."

The blemishes include a seven-stroke loss to upstart Novato on March 5 and a shocking 195-201 loss to San Marin on April 3. Both teams have traditionally been victories for Branson in the past, but an infusion of young talent across Marin county has elevated the level of play in the league.

"I think we underestimated our opponents a lot because we came in 4-0, 5-0 against non-league that we won easily," captain Jack Travers said. "We underestimated the teams in the MCAL. They weren't that good last year and we didn't come to play those days, and they came in and played well."

The combination of Travers, Atwater and Miguel Delgado give Branson arguably the best 1-2-3 punch in the MCAL. They each have potential to shoot the low for any match by hovering around even-par. They give the Bulls a chance to win every time they step onto the course.

The trio have also forged a strong bond on and off the course.

"We're really good friends," said Delgado, an all-MCAL first-team selection a year ago. "It's nice when we get to play together and we want to beat each other because we're competitive. But we have a great relationship, and we keep striving to make each other better."

Unfortunately for the rest of the league, they aren't going anywhere anytime soon. Travers is only a junior and has made big strides in his game, as well as in the classroom.

Delgado and Atwater are both in the running for the MCAL player of the year award. The scary aspect? They are only sophomores.

"Overall, we all respect each other," Atwater said. "And we want each other to play well."

Branson's lineup should be bolstered over the final weeks with the return of Charlie Crawford, another talented sophomore who dislocated his shoulder in the first week of the season, according to Endriss.

The biggest wild card for Branson between itself and winning MCALs will be the end of the lineup that includes up-and-coming, but inexperienced players such as Adam Libresco, Andrew Zimmer and Tao Zheng.

"Our younger guys have to trust the swing they have right and now worry so much if they have a bad shot," Endriss said. "There are going to be bad shots. They're like most young kids when they have a bad shot, it bothers them."

Delgado said it'll be a team effort in the end whether the Bulls can make a strong push in the postseason.

"We just have to encourage each other a lot," Delgado said. "There's a gray area between having a good time and being serious that we're trying to find."